CAREFUL THINKING

Haggai 1:5-7

 

“Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways.  You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it."  This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways.”

 

The Proverbs teach us to “acknowledge God in all of our ways.”  I know that we all try to do that.  I also know that it is hard to make it real.  It just seems like the lordship of Jesus is more applicable to some aspects of life than to others.  I have observed, for example, that before we leave town on a church outing we tend to stop and pray and ask for God’s help and protection.  But when I get into the car to run down to the Petro for a Moon Pie and a Diet Coke I don’t generally stop to pray for the Lord’s protection.  Yet clearly God is as much involved in one trip as He is in the other; I just don’t acknowledge it.  When Haggai wrote the verses above the people of God were supposed to be busy rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem.  But, as you might expect, they were distracted by the everyday things of life and had put God’s work on hold.  As a result, they were losing out on God’s blessing in every area of their lives. 

 

It can be the same with us.  We all – and I am speaking for myself mostly – take God’s grace, provision, and protection for granted.  One of the Bible paraphrases translates the end of vs. 6 above: “I am the God of the holes in your pockets.”  That’s an interesting thought, isn’t it?  The truth of the matter is that we can’t work hard enough or save up enough to do what we want by ourselves; we need God’s blessing.  But first, we have to trust Him and be obedient to His call in our lives.  “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteous . . .”  

 

In this short passage the Lord Almighty says, not once, but twice: “Give careful thought to your ways.”  Well, maybe it doesn’t hurt to stop and take inventory now and then.  But when you do, don’t forget this; we serve the One who satisfied the hunger of a multitude with only five loaves and two fish.  With His blessing there is plenty!

Pastor Keith Andrews